


the monsters we fear in the dark

by orphan_account



Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Minghao-centric, No Romance, Other, am i doing this right, fear of small places, fear of the dark, i don’t know how to tag, it’s an accident though, please i love him, self mutilation, seungkwan and jihoon are assholes, whatever enjoy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-12
Updated: 2020-07-12
Packaged: 2021-03-04 19:01:25
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,842
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25231270
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: it was just a fun game of truth or dare.right?
Relationships: Xu Ming Hao | The8/Everyone
Comments: 2
Kudos: 71





	the monsters we fear in the dark

it wasn’t supposed to happen like this. 

it was supposed to be a simple game of truth or dare before they headed back to their respective rooms for the night. 

it was supposed to be their little bit of fun before any of their managers returned. 

this was not supposed to happen. 

he knew it was a little odd when boo had first brought it up, even more so when seokmin immediately offered himself up to play too. 

but minghao brushed it off, glancing over the rim of his glasses before begrudgingly agreeing to join. 

not long after, all thirteen members had cleared out their common area so they could sit in a circle, like it was some kind of teenage girl sleepover. 

“okay...jisoo !! truth or dare?” soonyoung’s shrill call made minghao groan quietly to himself, and he zoned out before he could even hear the other’s pick. 

it stayed that way for a while, minghao staring down at where his fingers picked at the floor below him, but he was snapped out of it by someone calling his name loudly. 

“hmm?” he looked up quickly, seeing expressions of concern and amusement on everyone’s faces. 

“jihoon asked truth or dare.” wonwoo said softly, looking just a little concerned for his friend. 

“o-oh..uhm, dare.” he said softly, not trusting his voice. 

he knew he was screwed the moment he saw a wicked smirk spread on jihoon’s lips, and he felt a shiver run down his back at the glint that reflected in the older’s eyes. 

“i dare you to lock yourself in the hallway closet with the lights off for seven minutes.” 

minghao took in a sharp breath. they knew he was scared of both small spaces and the dark, so the idea that they would even bring this up frightened him. 

but he couldn’t reject it, not when he had his ego to hold on to. 

“fine, but as soon as the seven minutes are up you open the door, understood?” he grumbled, struggling for a moment to get up due to how bad his hands were shaking. 

seungcheol must have noticed, and he put a gentle hand on minghao’s own. 

“you don’t have to accept if you don’t want to..” he said softly, a sentence spoken between just the two of them. 

hao stares at him for a moment before pulling his hand away, smiling reassuringly. it was a silent way for him to say he would be fine. 

he closed his eyes for a moment and breathed as he stood in front of the closet, feeling jihoon’s presence slowly approach. 

“ready?” he asked, finally coming into minghao’s vision with his phone in hand. 

“as i’ll ever be.” he responded, opening the door to the small closet and stepping in. 

unfortunately, he missed the devilish grin the adorned the blonde’s face as he closed the door. 

it was worse than he expected. 

it was so so so much worse. 

jihoon must have expected him to use the little bit of lighting from under the door as a safe haven, and so the thin light of yellow light was quickly snuffed out by what he assumed to be a towel. 

he was fine for the first couple of minutes. or at least he thought it was a couple minutes. it could have been more, but it was most likely less. 

and then he heard it. the gentle tap, tap, tap against the wall behind him. 

he jumped and uncurled from the ball he had found himself in, a scowl quickly taking over his face. 

“that’s not funny !!” he shouted, biting his bottom lip. 

but he didn’t hear any response, and it was then that he noticed that it had gone deathly silent on the other side of the door. 

before, he had heard small shuffles, or mingyu giggling softly at something he assumed someone had said. now, he heard nothing, and it unsettled him to the core. 

“guys?” he called, pressing his ear against the door to see if he could hear anything. still nothing. 

his breathing quickly picked up, and he slammed a fist into the wood. 

“okay, you got me ! i want out now !!” he called, trying to keep his voice from cracking as he slowly fell i to panic. 

it stayed just as silent as before. 

his chest heaved with each shaky breath he took, and the door shuttered every time he slammed his palm into it. 

“let me out! i give up, punish me, i don’t care, but let me out!” he could feel his heart thumping hard against his ribs, and his cheeks flushed in panic. 

and there it was again. 

tap, tap, tap 

he screwed his eyes shut tightly, hands flying up to cover his ears. if he can’t hear it, it isn’t there. if he can’t hear it, it isn’t there. if he can’t hear it- 

thump!

a shrill scream ripped from deep within him, and he scrambled back into a corner as tears leaked from his eyes. 

“stop it!! stopitstopitstopit !!” 

he hadn’t realized that he had bitten into his cheek until he felt the warm, metallic taste fill him mouth. he was too focused on not passing out that he just slowly let it drip onto his shirt, mixing with the snot and tears that had already accumulated there. 

he needed to distract himself. anything to get his mind off the dark that was slowly starting to close in— 

no !! 

minghao took a few deep breaths to ground himself before slowly opening his eyes, trying to stay as calm as possible. he felt against the wall to try and find the door, but just as his hand made contact with more smooth drywall, the tapping returned. 

tap, tap, tap. 

now it was coming from right behind him, and he stiffened up. it was there, in the closet with him. 

whatever was making the noise was in the closet with him and was stooped over right behind him, just waiting for him to turn around. 

his breath caught in his throat and he let out a loud sob of fear. he couldn’t do this, he couldn’t. 

“puh-please...let me out..” he whispered meekly, sniffling loudly. 

he knew for a fact that it had been more than seven minutes, and yet no one had returned to let him out. 

he started counting. 

“1..2..3…”

—— 

thirty two minutes. it had been thirty two minutes since he was locked in the closet and yet he hadn’t moved from the spot he was in. 

somewhere along the seventeen minute mark he had started scratching at his arm, an unruly habit of his that often resulted in angry red welts on his skin. 

there were still tears slowly slipping down his cheeks, and his need to use the restroom had only heightened since he was locked up. 

“87..88..89…” 

——

his slowly scratching had turned into angry clawing and then into pulling at his skin, his hair, his eyelashes, anything to keep him distracted from the thing that still crouched behind him. 

if he didn’t acknowledge that it was there, it would eventually go away, right? 

every now and again he would quietly call out for one of his members, hoping, praying, that they would somehow hear him…

no one came. 

——

“i don’t know how i feel about this…” jisoo mumbled, taking another bite of the food in front of him. 

“don’t worry about it !! he’s not dumb enough to not realize that the door wasn’t even locked in the first place. he’s probably left the closet and is sitting in his room on his phone.” boo shrugged off the concern, stuffing his mouth with another serving of tteokbokki. 

“yeah, you’re probably right..”

—— 

it was closer now, drooling down his arm and waiting. just waiting for him to turn his head and notice it. but the fear that nestled deep within minghao’s chest kept him from moving, save for the way his jaw moved as he chewed his cheek and his fingers danced across his thighs. 

he pressed into the sores that were a result of his scratching, using the pain as a way to distract himself. 

just a little longer. just- 

“138..139..140…” 

—— 

“alright, i think- i think it’s about time we head home..” jeonghan murmured, a yawn interrupting him. 

“yeah, my tummy is all full!!” boo exclaimed, smacking his stomach and relishing in the laughter that came from his friends. 

“don’t be surprised if hao kills us when we get home.” 

——

minghao had pissed himself a long time ago, and the cold puddle of liquid that he kneeled in was not nearly uncomfortable enough that he would dare move. 

the creature had managed to climb up onto the shelf above him, he could feel it staring at him, hovering, waiting…

drool had puddled on his thighs and slid down to mix with the mess on the floor, and yet he did not flinch. he did not move a muscle. 

it was so close, so very close..he couldn’t risk it. not when he was so certain the members would come to his rescue soon. 

the buzzy feeling that ran through his body and left his mind a muddled mess wasn’t enough to get him to move. and even as his head threatened to lull forward, and his eyes drooped, the eyes that stared at him kept him stiff. 

he didn’t twitch when he heard the door to the dorms open. 

he didn’t move when he heard people calling his name and quiet laughter come closer. 

he didn’t budge when he heard a loud gasp and the sound of something wet being picked up and moved just right outside of the closet door. 

he didn’t stir until light slowly flooded the dark closet, and he was forced to close his eyes at the harsh brightness. 

he smiled softly before his face crumpled and he began to sob, the sound of his members shouting and shuffling surrounding him. 

they saved him, they came for him. 

“thank you, thank you, thank you..” he mumbled, almost chanting, as strong arms lifted him up, and he was carefully taken to the bathroom. 

everything sounded fuzzy, but he could just make out seungcheol screaming at jihoon and boo. 

“jesus christ..” he turned his head up, having to take a second to realize that wonwoo was the one carrying him, “what the hell did you do to yourself, hao..” 

what did he mean? there was nothing wrong with him. he had a small accident, and was covered in drool, but that was all. 

“d-did you see him? when the door was opened?” he asked, wincing as he was set down on the toilet so the other could set the tub up. 

“see who?” wonwoo asked, voice laced with concern. 

“the monster. he’s the one who drooled all over me—“ he stopped. 

there wasn’t any drool on any part of his body. instead, he was covered in deep gashes and blood, some dry and some still slowly oozing from  
his wounds. 

“oh…”

——

**Author's Note:**

> thanks for reading 👉🏻👈🏻 this was my first fic ever so like ,,, gimme some tips or wtv 
> 
> no beta read !!


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